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Antiques
All Things Home

the antique swedish herbarium

As I shared this summer, I decided to start pressing flowers, herbs, leaves, and other interesting bits from my garden.  (You can read about that HERE.)  I thought it would be an artsy way to record what I’m planting and how things grow.  I also thought pressed plants might be a good jumping-off point for paintings, sketches, and pattern design.  Since I struggle so much with painting flowers, maybe I can paint them better if they are flat.  I knew pressing and mounting plants had been around for centuries, but I had never heard of a Herbarium until I got lost down the rabbit hole of record keeping.  If you’ve followed me for a few years, you know I am enamored with old journals, sketchbooks, diaries, sewing sampler books, and ledgers, and I have collected many fine examples of those over the years.  Now, I not only wanted to make

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February 3, 2025 26 Comments
All Things Home

the lost art of polishing & ironing

Last week, I took some time to pay a bit of attention to my pens and pencils.  If you use disposable ballpoint pens, that might sound like an odd task, but I primarily use fountain pens, refillable mechanical pencils, and even refillable ballpoint pens.  Several of my pens and pencils are silver or brass, which need to be polished now and then.  I realize not everyone would want to spend time out of their day to polish their pencils and fiddle with a clogged nib on a fountain pen, but I found delight in the chore. Even though we have more time-saving and labor-saving devices than ever, we use more disposable things than ever. I’m not judging anyone who uses disposable things for their ease.  I used disposable diapers for my boys.  I use paper plates and cups when we have a lot of people over, paper towels for rags

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January 29, 2025 25 Comments
All Things Home

the Repoussé pitcher

When I shared my Christmas dining room last week, I received so many comments and questions about the silver water pitcher on the table. It’s a sterling silver pitcher by Kirk Stieff in the Repoussé pattern that was first introduced in 1828.  I’ve shared about this silver pattern before since it is my family’s silver and it makes a regular appearance here on the blog. Four generations of my family have collected this pattern and a portion of the collection was passed down to me, including this stunning water pitcher. Some of the pieces I inherited date back to the mid-1800s. Since Marian is a family name, a couple even have my name on them. My Oma collected things she loved, including this silver pattern that was passed down to her and added to over the years. I know this pitcher was hers because it wears her monogram. It may

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January 13, 2025 12 Comments
All Things Home

kitchen paper towel holder alternative

I decided years ago to ditch the paper towel holder in my kitchen.  I don’t have anything against them, but I just never found one I really loved.  I found one or two over the years that were tolerable and I used them because you need to have a paper towel holder.  One day when I was rearranging the accessories on the kitchen counters at our PA house, I tried something different.  I grabbed a vintage locker basket, dropped two paper towel rolls in, and I liked it.  The locker basket put an end to tippy paper towel holders that never felt quite right for my style.  I used it for years in our PA house, MN house, and when we first moved to our current house in Maryland.  As I started playing with the final touches of the kitchen renovation, the locker basket didn’t feel right in this kitchen,

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November 12, 2024 20 Comments
Antiques

Lucketts Fall Market 2024 Purchases

I already shared the antique ironstone milk pan I purchased at the Lucketts Fall Market in THIS POST, but I wanted to share the rest of the things I bought.  I ended up coming home with a relatively empty van because I didn’t buy any large pieces, but I still brought home several treasures. My first purchase was this little notebook from Hearth & Home Mercantile.  It’s not an antique, but I loved the French book cover, and fabric spine, and the papers were heavy-weight craft paper with a mix of designs.  There were small grids, lines, and blank pages.  It’s hard for me to resist a unique notebook even though I have a more-than-ample supply! I wanted to find chunky, antique gold frames in smaller sizes and this one from Amanda’s Mercantile was exactly what I had in mind. I mean, it is chunky and so beautiful! I’ll have

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October 29, 2024 18 Comments
Antiques

the story of the ironstone milk pans

One of the vendors that’s been a favorite at the Lucketts Spring & Fall Markets each year has been Barn Fresh Designs.  They always have lovely pieces, an eye-catching display, and reasonable prices.  I’ve bought a few things from them over the last few markets and was excited to see them in a new space at the 2024 Fall Market.  I recognized their pieces right away and exclaimed, “You moved!”  I was pulling a couple of chunky gold frames off of a wall to purchase and Bob came over to hold them for me and say hello.  In addition to their new location, I was also surprised by the presence of a large ironstone milk pan I had passed up at the Spring Market.  So, let me tell you about the ironstone milk pans… I bought a nesting set of them from Barn Fresh Designs at the Spring 2023 market. 

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October 21, 2024 11 Comments
a slice of life

Lucketts Fall Market 2024 recap

Another Lucketts Market is in the books!  Attending the Lucketts markets has definitely been a perk of moving back to the mid-Atlantic region.  My mom and I know the Friday of the Spring and Fall Markets are written in ink on the calendar and we need to work everything else around them.  Well, the Early Bird shopping of the 2024 Fall Market did not disappoint.  First of all, the weather was heavenly.  It was just what you want in a fall market.  We had sunny skies, a crisp bite to the air, and a slight breeze that was just enough to rustle the leaves.  We started the morning with sweaters and jackets and shed them around lunchtime. The vendors and the Lucketts crew, as expected, put on a great show.  Lucketts does a great job at creating “moments” throughout the event.  Places to take pictures, to sit and eat or

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October 14, 2024 7 Comments
Antiques

Lucketts fall market wish list 2024

Here we are at another Lucketts Market!  I miss the weather (believe it or not) and friends in Minnesota, but I am so glad to be back on the East Coast again and an hour away from Lucketts.  As I’ve shared many times over the years, it’s a special place to me not only because it’s an awesome and inspiring place to shop, but because the people at Lucketts are dear to me.  So many of them are a part of my story.  They encouraged me, showed me the ropes, took me under their wing, championed my successes, graciously wished me well when it was time to move on, and welcomed me back as one would expect from old friends.  I find the collective group of designers, vendors, and creative minds endlessly inspiring.  It’s a vibe I want to soak in any time I can. I’ve gone to the last

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October 9, 2024 9 Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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